-a fine line- part two/ sequal

Chapter 21- Disaster dinner

I'm sorry for not having updated it forever! I was actually in my exam week so I was extremely busy, not to mention the added stress.

Y/N sat down heavily on the armchair. Her limbs were exhausted and her body couldn't keep up with the floo after the trial. The formal robes she was wearing were now scratching her skin although the company she bought it from promised it to be silken soft. Severus was even worse; seconds later the fire turned green and he stumbled out of it without his usual gracefulness. He dragged a hand over his face when he noticed Y/N sitting.

They'd just come back from the trial against Jayden's mother for spreading false information. They hadn't expected much to come from it except perhaps a small punishment because Severus did, in fact, lose his job because of it. They won but that wasn't the same as it is easy. She had a lot of bystanders being able to defend her with sweet words of; 'but she's so nice' and 'she would never do that, I know her.' Fortunately, they had solid proof of her behaviour to both Dumbledore and Severus.

"I need a drink," The man sighed, striding towards the cabinet and immediately taking out a bottle without even looking at the label. He held it at the neck and spelled the stopper off, letting it vanish into thin air before pouring himself an amount in the glass.

"I don't think that's wise. Jayden and his....friend are coming over for a sleepover." Indeed, it was the weekend and they finally set a date for Jayden and his friend to sleep over at their quarters. She was absolutely convinced that it wasn't his friend, but they'll see tonight. She knew they'd have at least one slip if they were actually together.

Severus sighed heavily as he put down the alcohol with an annoyed look directed at her. Y/N was perplexed by how the last days were going with him. Ever since he got fired because of that inconvenience, which was luckily over now, he was different. He fell back into his old state, although didn't use the same coping mechanism for it. Perhaps he had a rough time like her when he got fired and to make himself feel better, he decided to not break his years of being clean from cutting, but instead got his hands onto alcohol. Of course, Severus was too dense to talk with properly so that's why she failed to have brought it up by now.

Severus muttered something that wasn't quite hearable for her just when muffled voices appeared in front of the door.

"They won't suspect a thing, I promise." Definitely Jayden. She smirked to herself and Severus let the two children through his wards with a wave of his hand.

"Here we go," Severus said with a mocking voice and an annoyed smirk.

"Be nice," Y/N warned. The boys came in and Jayden immediately ran up to Y/N for an embrace. Ever since the incident in the bathroom, they grew more closer while Jayden and Severus grew more apart. She ruffled his unruly, thick hair with her hand. They greeted each other and then Jayden gently pushed onto the other boy's back to push him towards Y/N a bit more. From the looks of it, the boy was extremely shy. She had yet to figure out whether this was his personality or just because it was the first meeting. 

He had blond, wildly cut hair. It was longer than Jayden's but shorter than Severus' hair. It complimented the facial structure but, of course, Y/N didn't say that. She shook his hand, looking into the blue eyes. When comparing heights, he was an inch or two taller than Jayden.

"It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Y/N, and this is Severus." She gestured in Severus' direction who was standing with a bit of distance between them. Jayden hadn't even said anything to him yet, except for a curt nod in his direction. There's definitely something going on between those two. She made a mental note to ask about it later. For now, her task was to make the other boy as comfortable as possible which was hard when Severus was right there glaring at them.

"Yes, hello. I er- know you," There was a brief silence, "Oh sorry. I'm Francis." She smiled at the boy named Francis while Severus gave a sigh. Everyone ignored it and she managed to engage the boys into some small talk before letting them go to Jayden's room. Y/N was sure she heard a privacy spell being put on because suddenly all the noises quieted down. She turned to look at Severus still standing in the same position.

"I can't believe you. You scared the shit out of the boy" She huffed, crossing her arms in front of her. And he did. She saw how Francis kept glancing at Severus before looking away with a blush. Y/N thought he must not know what to do; whether to personally introduce himself to him or not. No one else did, so Francis was left in an awkward position of his mind debating whether to do it or not. Severus wasn't a great help, either....standing there and glaring through narrowed eyes. Of course, Severus and Francis already knew each other since Severus taught him but this was more personal.

"Indeed. I didn't notice," He eventually drawled. Y/N was too exhausted to get into a fight so she stayed silent. Jayden and Francis were here tonight and she didn't want to be the one to spoil it, even when Severus' mood put her on edge.

She read a book until it was time to cook dinner. She decided on making simple pasta, because who didn't like that? Severus and she hadn't spoken a word so she got up and began to prepare the ingredients. It was well over an hour when it was done and out of the oven. Severus got the boys downstairs with a bit more enthusiasm than before. They sat at the dinner table; Severus beside her, opposite of her Jayden and next to Jayden Francis.

Francis hadn't looked up from his plate ever since coming downstairs and he was still nervous, although more relaxed than when he arrived.

"Do you have any future plans yet?" Y/N asked. Francis briefly made eye contact with her and smiled, twirling the spaghetti gracefully on his fork.

"I really like Herbology as a subject, so perhaps something with that. I haven't figured it out precisely."

"Well, if you're interested Severus may be able to teach you about the plants that aren't in your class. They're a bit more advanced and harder to harvest and take care of." Francis' eyes went wide and he looked at Severus eagerly.

"Really? You would do that, professor?" He managed to say without stumbling over his words. Severus seemed to want to snap at the boy until he used his professional name. It calmed him down a fraction and he gave Francis a curt nod. It wouldn't seem hesitant to anyone except for Y/N who noticed the stiff shoulders. Dinner was almost over when Jayden leaned towards Francis to whisper in his ear.

"Can you pass me the salt, daddy?" Y/N and Severus both choked on the food, including Francis who started to blush. His eyes immediately darted up to see if Severus and Y/N heard, who quickly got their eyes on their own plate and pretended it hadn't happened. Jayden seemed oblivious to what was happening around them and got back as if the entire table hadn't heard it. It wasn't until the boys stood up from the table that they talked again.

"I think they heard us." Jayden let out a giggle at Francis' statement and nodded before they were out of sight. Y/N cleaned the dishes with Severus' help. It was quiet, not uncomfortable, although she was bothered by the hanging tension between the two. She had to talk to him as soon as possible but now wasn't the time, since the man obviously needed some space after the tiresome day.

"Who knew the boy is a top?" Severus murmured into Y/N's ear, not necessarily mean but with a sharp edge to his tone.

"You're awful," Y/N joked.